


connected dreams

by kyungaroo



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Fluff, IMWEAK, M/M, Mild Language, all the exo members appear at some point i hope, artist!chen, back again w another chanchen, comedian!chanyeol, how to tag, i lied barely any of the members appear, squint to see sookris
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-29
Updated: 2018-01-29
Packaged: 2019-02-23 12:10:39
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,443
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13189809
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kyungaroo/pseuds/kyungaroo
Summary: it all started with that dream





	connected dreams

**Author's Note:**

> its a mess

 

 

Jongdae is an artist, a quite popular one at that. He has his own area in one of the biggest art museums. Not to toot his own horn but, he's doing pretty well in life. His family supports him and he has a good circle of friends. He lives in a nice apartment despite his parents telling him to just buy his own house. He'd rather stick to a nice, homely apartment that doesn't cost too much. 

Lately, his inspiration has been running low- it's frustrating him to no end. Every time he thinks he has an idea, it just disappears and he could only drop his paintbrush with a low groan. 

He glances at his clock and sighs, shrugging off his troubles in return for sleep. As he shimmies into his bed, pulling the covers over him nicely, he thinks this is much better than stressing too much. He'll be passionate about art in the morning.

 

_A dark blue sky sprinkled with stars was all he could see for a moment. He quickly sits up and tries to make out his surroundings. His grounding is cement, he appears to be on a rooftop. Of what ? Where ? He doesn't know. He stands up and looks over the edge, the cool wind disheveling his hair. His shirt is thin and slightly big one him, making him shiver as the wind runs past him- it doesn't help that he's wearing shorts too but, who is he to judge what his dream gives him ? As he's just about to enjoy this calm dream (and try to get warm somehow) , a deep, baritone voice calls out. It sounds hesitant._

_"Hello?"_

_Jongdae turns around and sees a tall, lanky man. a confused look is painted on his face and, it's quite a handsome face, not to mention bright red hair. He doesn't question why the other is only in boxers and a sleeveless shirt. Handsome face or not, he's never seen this man before, so he raises a brow, tilting his head questioningly._

_"Yes? Who are you?"_

_The man seems startled, if his small jump said anything. It was as if he didn't expect Jongdae to actually reply. He slowly starts toward Jongdae and he's not sure if he should be worried. after all, it's just a dream._

_"I'm Chanyeol. And you are?" He doesn't know a Chanyeol. Maybe he's just getting lonely._

_"I'm Jongdae, it's nice meeting you, Chanyeol." he smiles and he's rewarded with the other's warm smile. The kind of smile that makes him think, whatever dream this is, he's going to enjoy it more than he was if it was just him now._

_"likewise."_

_Music begins playing out of no where and they're both looking around in confusion. Chanyeol starts laughing and Jongdae can't help but join him. It's just so strange, it feels as though he's in a movie. Chanyeol speaks up again._

_"Such a strange dream this is. but i feel as though this is a sign," the other holds out his hand, hopeful smile planted on his face. "Care to dance?"_

_Jongdae laughs and takes the other's hand without a second thought. He's never danced but, he hopes he's okay. The beat is slow and soothing and they easily begin moving their limbs along to it. They stumble and trip over each other after a couple of seconds, both lacking experience in this field._

_"We're not the best at this." He says, wide smile on his face._

_"But we can be better at making this the best," Chanyeol curls one of his hands around his waist, guiding jongdae's to his shoulder as he holds his other hand. And hell. If that wasn't one of smoothest things Jongdae has ever heard then he doesn't know what is. "We can make do with this."_

_He nods before they both burst into laughter, dancing away without a care. He doesn't know how much time passes, how long they've just been circling around in each other's arms, smiling widely at the stranger they just meant. No words exchanged, just laughter and wide smiles that somehow have fondness appearing in them. The laughter is cut off by Chanyeol again, he's whispering._

_"Do you think we'll ever see each other again?"_

_Jongdae pauses and he thinks for a bit. his dreams aren't always like this, and it's certainly one that he enjoyed the most so far. Though he thinks about it, this person can just be something he created to mask his loneliness, to satisfy himself._

_"I don't know."_

_It's after a while that Jongdae realizes that he might never see this man again, he might not even be real, and the thought leaves him with a somewhat sad and bitter taste in his mouth. Chanyeol seems to notice this and smiles softly, leaning in to press their foreheads together. T_ _hey share another laugh and the sun starts to rise. He notices that as the sun continues to rise, both his and Chanyeol's body begin to fade. He looks up at Chanyeol with a smile, albeit slightly disappointed that this dream is ending so quickly._

_"I guess this is goodbye, Chanyeol."_

_"We didn't get to as each other questions and all yet." the other breathes out, a light laugh escaping his lips._

_"Perhaps next time." and with that, everything vanishes._

 

When Jongdae wakes up, all he can do is stare at the ceiling blankly, clenching and unclenching his fists repeatedly. He lets out a breath he didn't know he was holding and turns his head, staring at the empty space beside him expectantly. Hope fooled him into expecting that maybe, just maybe, Chanyeol would be beside him when he woke up and that's the reason why he was in the dream to begin with. He doesn't want to explain why Chanyeol would even be in his bed but, he's just so disappointed. The dream seemed so real. Chanyeol seemed so real.

After a couple of seconds of just staring at nothing, his eyes blink wide open, his hand twitches, and he quickly tosses his blankets off his body. (Looking down at himself made him feel so idiotic- the clothes he was wearing in the dream were the clothes he went to bed in.) The sudden urge to just recreate his dream in came and he needs to hurry before the colors fade.

He hops out of bed, not bothering to clean up, just needing to  _paint._ He rushes towards his work room. It's a mess  _(kinda like him)_ , there's dried up paint splatters on both the floors and walls and his brushes are scattered everywhere. There's a collection of his unfinished work, all the canvases thrown on the floor, tossed to the side. Various types of paint are placed on a shelf, the only thing that's organized in the room. He picks up a clean canvas and puts it on the empty easel in the middle of the room. Everything is pictured in his head, the way they danced, making him forget all about the cold so all he can think about is the warmth forming in his chest. When he gets everything ready , he smiles wide and knows he'll have a new piece soon.

 

It's not long before his new work is posted up in the art museum. Yixing compliments him, telling him, "It's wonderful! The colors of the sky, the two people dancing upon the rooftop, their faces are so- so impressive, their feelings are perfectly captured in it..." and what not. It's an honor to have Yixing compliment your work, especially when he's known to be harsh and continuously gives people an "F" or tells them they have stuff to work on. So because of this he's beaming brightly as he walks around his section, smiling widely at the people admiring his work. 

Then, he pauses. In front of his newest work is familiar sight. A tall man with red hair is staring at his painting and Jongdae is so hopeful. Their back is turned to him but, he just feels like it's him, Chanyeol. The other's large ears stick out like a sore thumb and  there's no way it's not Chanyeol. He thinks to himself, this is his chance, he can go to Chanyeol and ask him if he'd like to get back to what they never finished. He musters as much courage to approach the tall man only to see the other being dragged away by the sleeve by another shorter man, with the supposedly Chanyeol yelling, "Kris can wait- Soo!" Jongdae thinks, that voice. Jongdae walks away, smile smaller and steps heavier.

 

He doesn't know why he's so caught up with that red head. They only met each other once and even then it was only in a dream. It's just, after that day of seeing someone look (from behind) and sound so much like Chanyeol, he can't help but have a small sliver of hope residing in him. 

With all this moping around and all these sighs leaving his lips, he decides that he needs to loosen up a bit, to relax. What better way than to go to a stand up comedy show? 

When he gets there, there's a relatively good amount of people. He bites his lip and in distaste at the people, not really wanting to interact with them. So thus, he takes a seat farthest away from the stage, darkness cloaking him in the dimly lighted club. Everyone is talking, chatting it up with each other in whispers while Jongdae texts his oh so dear friend, Baekhyun. Baekhyun is no help to cure his boredom when he waits for the next comedian to come up. The other tells him to talk to people to which Jongdae positively says no to. He's in the middle of sending another text before everyone suddenly shuts up. Jongdae shoves his phone in his bag and looks at the stage, hoping for a good time.

The person walks onto stage with a wide smile and Jongdae freezes, his heart starts to race, and he just doesn't know what to do. They begin to talk and Jongdae wants to cry. They sound exactly like Chanyeol too. Those big eyes, warm big smile, large ears that just somehow work on him, and that unforgettable red hair. He thinks he might faint.

 Chanyeol starts off with a couple of jokes, getting the crowd to warm up with small chuckles here and there before actually starting something.

"Believe it or not, but what I'm about to tell you is a true story," Chanyeol grins and makes a random gesture with his hands. "so a couple of nights ago, I went to bed and had an amazing dream." Jongdae clenches his fists, toes curling up as butterflies feel like they're going to burst out of his chest. 

"In the dream, I saw this man. He was beautiful, the moonlight lighting up his face in all the right ways- he was just looking out this rooftop like, isn't that cool? And I just happened to be there! In my boxers. But that's not important. I called out to the guy and walk over to him. He smiles and it's as if it was day time, his smile was so bright I thought the sun was in front of me! We introduce each other and whatever. Suddenly, music is playing out of no where! ~It was just like a movie~" he sings the last part and here's the audience laugh before continuing his story. "And we just decide to dance. We danced for what seemed like forever- it was so ethereal. The sun starts to rise and we both start to fade- the dream was ending. We bid our farewells and I wake up. Now, it was just a dream right? There's no way I could ever see the guy right? Well, just a day ago, I decided to go to an art museum. And when I pause right in front of a painting that was so familiar. Why was it familiar? Because it was a painting of my dream. I'm not kidding- the guy in the painting looked exactly like me! I don't know if this was a coincidence but, i thought I'd just share that with you all." He laughs to himself and someone from the crowd speaks up.

"We came here for comedy, not for this!"

Chanyeol raises a brow in amusement. "Well you're right! I was just about to go into some funn-" he's cut off by the same person.

"But we're not disaappointed. It sounds like fate dude!" The red haired male blinks before laughing sheepishly, shaking his head.

"Thank you! But I'll actually get to some stuff that'll make you guys laugh!" 

Jongdae doesn't know what he's doing, he just knows he can't let an opportunity like this slip through his fingers like last time. He stands up from where he's sitting, grabs his bag and does a slight jog to the front, a soft and breathy "Chanyeol-" flies past his lips and it's so soft, he thinks Chanyeol won't hear it. But miraculously, he does. (it must be the ears) They make eye contact andChanyeol freezes, reaction much like his own earlier. He puts the mike down and runs to him, despite being in the middle of a performance. He gathers Jongdae into his arms and looks at him in disbelief. Jongdae knows he looking at Chanyeol the same way.

"You're... You're actually here.. you're real! So- it wasn't a coincidence?" 

"No, I thought you weren't real- I think I saw you at the museum looking at my work but, before I could do anything, this other guy was pulling you away." Jongdae admits before blinking. "You didn't know who I was? I thought lots of people know how the famous "Chen" looked like."

"Oh well.." Chanyeol mumbles and looks down, looking like a somewhat kicked puppy. "I'm sorry, I only knew your work, not how Chen looked like."

Jongdae's laugh is cut off by the audience, some watching in disgust, others watching in amusement and such. He hears some people whisper "fag" and "cute" before ultimately, "Do you guys want to leave?"

The two nod quickly and Chanyeol grabs his things, pulling Jongdae out of the place. He pulls Jongdae to a random park, stopping suddenly to turn back to Jongdae. 

He whispers with red cheeks, "Can I take you out on a date? We can grab some coffee if you'd like."

This was all so unreal and unbelievable but, Jongdae just laughs, nodding in agreement. "Yeah, I'd love to. We can get back on where we left off."

**Author's Note:**

> i should be working on my other fic but im stuck so im gonna write this rn bc the idea came and i was like,,, damn. unbeta'd ! this is a mess, it could've turned out way better but I suck ! oops


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